A wait in the sun

Missing bus shelters have been a perpetual problem for the commuters of the City.

Though there are designated stops where most BMTC buses halt, there are 

no shelters where the passengers can sit and wait.

The Agara bus stop, which has become a major bus stop, has no shelter and passengers can be seen queuing up for buses beneath the flyovers on either side of the road. The dust and traffic add to the woes of the commuters.

“It is a big stop and connects people living in and around this area to various parts of the City like MG Road, Hebbal, Electronic City, Marathalli etc. Despite being a major transit point for commuters, the place has had no bus shelter for as long as I can remember. It is a huge problem during monsoon and summer. There is also a lot of dust and pollution as there is  continuous flow of traffic in this area,” says Abbe, a resident of HSR Layout.

There are many other areas with missing bus shelters where commuters have to bear the scorching sun. 

“There aren’t any bus shelters on the other side of the KFC Junction on 100 Feet Road, Indiranagar. We generally wait for the buses under a tree. In fact there are no bus shelters near the Indiranagar Metro station for people going to Ulsoor and other neighbouring areas. Sometimes, commuters can be seen walking in the drainage water to board a bus as the manhole and drains on that stretch are perennially leaking and damaged. The problem becomes worse when there is work happening on the stretch. Commuters have to bear the stench and wait for the bus as there are no shelters there,” says Anulekha, a commuter.

Though the BBMP has constructed some new bus shelters in the busy areas, many areas have not had this facility yet. 

“We have planned to construct many bus shelters which will come up in many areas of the City soon. We also plan to revamp many of these shelters as they are 

in a very bad state,” says M Lakshminarayana, the commissioner of BBMP.

Many point out that new bus shelters had been erected at several places before the elections. However, that work has come to a halt now that the polls are over. 

What is also bothering 

People is that most of the big stops have either damaged or no bus shelters. 

“What is worse is that most of the big stops have no shelters. While some areas have three or four shelters on one stre­t­ch, there are places with no bus shelters for kilometres altogether. There are hardly any bus shelters on the Outer Ring Road in and around Marthahalli and Bommasandra. 

Even the senior citizens have no option but to wait in the sun for the bus,” concludes Srikant, a student.